The first public beta of tvOS 13 includes announced features along with an unannounced 'Wireless Audio Sync' function.
Wireless Audio Sync
Apple announced tvOS 13 at its annual WWDC conference but the company did not highlight all features. Besides a new picture-in-picture function, there is a new audio calibration feature that will help improve wireless audio performance.
The so-called 'Wireless Audio Sync' can be found under 'calibration'. Apple explains that you can "use your iOS device to measure how long your television takes to play audio and video". Audio delay - or lip sync - was one of the issues that we highlighted in our review of Apple HomePod so it is great to see Apple trying to address the problem. We will examine the new system in detail later.
The public beta of tvOS 13 also includes several of the announced features such as the refreshed home screen, a new control center, multi-user functionality, and support for PlayStation and Xbox game controllers. We tried to pair the controller from our PS4 Pro and it was smooth sailing. It works just as expected. The PS button can be used to call up the new control center.
The new underwater 4K HDR screensavers produced in collaboration with BBC Natural History have yet to appear - at least for us.
Apple will release tvOS 13 publicly this fall. Later this year, Apple will also launch its new game service, Apple Arcade, and its new video streaming service, Apple TV+. Both will be available as apps on Apple TV.
You can install the public beta of tvOS 13 by enrolling here. However, be aware that it may contain bugs.
